| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 18 of 31 in the1996 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
 The 1996 DieHard 500 program cover, featuringSterling Marlin. | |||
| Date | July 28, 1996 (1996-07-28) | ||
| Official name | 28th Annual DieHard 500 | ||
| Location | Lincoln, Alabama,Talladega Superspeedway | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 2.66 miles (4.28 km) | ||
| Distance | 129 laps, 343.14 mi (552.230 km) | ||
| Scheduled distance | 188 laps, 500.08 mi (804.8 km) | ||
| Average speed | 133.387 miles per hour (214.666 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 100,000 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | ||
| Time | 49.779 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | |
| Laps | 40 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | CBS | ||
| Announcers | Ken Squier,Ned Jarrett,Buddy Baker | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Motor Racing Network | ||
The1996 DieHard 500 was the 18thstock car race of the1996 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 28th iteration of theevent. The race was held on Sunday, July 28, 1996, before an audience of 100,000 inLincoln, Alabama atTalladega Superspeedway, a 2.66 miles (4.28 km) permanent triangle-shapedsuperspeedway. The race was shortened from its scheduled 188 laps to 129 laps due to darkness caused by rain delays and lengthy crash cleanups. At race's end,Hendrick Motorsports driverJeff Gordon would manage to avoid numerous crashes and stay in front when the race was eventually called to take his 15th careerNASCAR Winston Cup Series and his sixth victory of the season.[1][2] To fill out the top three,Robert Yates Racing driverDale Jarrett andRoush Racing driverMark Martin would finish second and third, respectively.
On lap 117, a major crash involving 13 drivers, including the drivers ofDale Earnhardt andSterling Marlin, would occur on the track's frontstretch. Marlin would be spun by hittingErnie Irvan's front bumper, sending him into Earnhardt. Earnhardt would proceed to crash violently into the outside wall, sending Earnhardt into a flip before landing on all four wheels. In the midst of the chaos, others would be involved in the accident, with many placing blame on Irvan and Marlin for the crash. In the process, Earnhardt would be transported to theCarraway Methodist Medical Center inBirmingham, Alabama where he was diagnosed with a broken sternum and a broken left collarbone.[3]
Talladega Superspeedway, originally known asAlabama International Motor Superspeedway (AIMS), is amotorsports complex located north ofTalladega, Alabama. It is located on the formerAnniston Air Force Base in the small city ofLincoln. The track is atri-oval and was constructed in the 1960s by theInternational Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by theFrance family. Talladega is most known for its steep banking and the unique location of the start/finish line that's located just past the exit to pit road. The track currently hosts theNASCAR series such as theNASCAR Cup Series,Xfinity Series and theCamping World Truck Series. Talladega is the longestNASCAR oval with a length of 2.66-mile-long (4.28 km) tri-oval like theDaytona International Speedway, which also is a 2.5-mile-long (4.0 km) tri-oval.
Qualifying was originally scheduled split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, July 26, at 4:00 PMEST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. During the first round, the top 25 drivers in the round would be guaranteed a starting spot in the race.[4] However, on Saturday, July 27, rain would eventually force the cancellation of second-round qualifying, and the decision was made that positions 26-38 would be determined by their first round qualifying speeds and depending on who needed it, a select amount of positions were given to cars who had not otherwise qualified but were high enough in owner's points; up to four provisionals were given. If needed, a past champion who did not qualify on either time or provisionals could use a champion's provisional, adding one more spot to the field.[5]
Jeremy Mayfield, driving forCale Yarborough Motorsports, would win the pole, setting a time of 49.779 and an average speed of 192.370 miles per hour (309.590 km/h) in the first round.[6]
Chad Little was the only driver to fail to qualify.
The race was due to start at 12:15pmCST but rain delayed the start time to 3:35pm and ran eleven laps before rain red flagged the race at 4:09pm with the race restarting at 4:32pm and the race starting at 4:36pm on lap thirteen.
John Andretti tried to get inside ofDale Jarrett but Andretti who had a loose car all day spun and collectedBrett Bodine,Ricky Rudd,Joe Nemechek had a flat tyre but was able to continue.
On lap 116, Earnhardt was leading with Marlin on his outside and Irvan behind him, the big one happened when Irvan got into Marlin which led him to turn into Earnhardt. Earnhardt was hit in the roof byDerrike Cope and on the side byRobert Pressley. The accident also collectedTerry Labonte,Mark Martin,Lake Speed,Brett Bodine,Wally Dallenbach, Jr.,Ward Burton,Ken Schrader,Greg Sacks andRicky Craven. Martin had a puncture and Irvan had right front fender damage but both stayed on the lead lap, Craven fell a lap down and Bodine fell three laps down. The race was red flagged on lap 118 to clear up the cars of Earnhardt, Marlin, Pressley, Labonte, Speed, Burton, Schrader, Craven, and Dallenbach, Jr did not restart the race. Earnhardt was then sent to hospital with a broken collarbone and sternum.
With light fading,NASCAR elected to shorten the race with a five lap shootout from the green flag on lap 125. Gordon would win from Jarrett. The race would be completed by 7:05pm
The Diehard 500 was covered byCBS in the United States.Ken Squier, two-timeNASCAR Cup Series championNed Jarrett and1975 race winnerBuddy Baker called the race from the broadcast booth.Mike Joy,David Hobbs andDick Berggren handled pit road for the television side. Due to the rain delay, CBS aired Golf instead but aired the race as an abridge broadcast on August 4, the day after the1996 Brickyard 400. This would be the last raceDavid Hobbs would work with CBS as he would leave for Speedvision to cover theirFormula One races.
| CBS | ||
|---|---|---|
| Booth announcers | Pit reporters | |
| Lap-by-lap | Color-commentators | |
| Ken Squier | Ned Jarrett Buddy Baker | Mike Joy David Hobbs Dick Berggren |
| Previous race: 1996 Miller 500 (Pocono) | NASCAR Winston Cup Series 1996 season | Next race: 1996 Brickyard 400 |